Billy Conn vs Ingemar Johansson

"Johansson flattened Machen and Patterson because they under-estimated him as a threat."

Patterson?

Gosh, I'm old enough to remember the build-up to that fight and the Machen film was shown. Ingo was well enough known to be the secret guest on "What's My Line" and the first panelist guessed him right away.
He was not that obscure.

I remember a panel show after the Patterson-London bout and three of the four experts picked Johansson "if he is as good as they say" to ko the "blown-up lightheavyweight"--"weak-jawed" Patterson.

Machen was known as a film-watcher. It is difficult to believe he would not have noticed Ingo's big right on films, such as the one with Ten Hoff.

 

Well then, suppose he was known for having the power to KO the number 1 contender and the world heavyweight champion in successive fights, but Machen and Patterson still did absolutely nothing to take away that right hand of his out of the equation. That was the danger about Johansson.

 

I can't help but think that the Machen of the Liston fight...loser though he was...would have turned the tables with style on Ingo. That'a the way Machen was I guess..he ran hot or cold. I think he would have been even more assured..not over confident, but more assured vs Ingo than he was with Liston and would have not only eluded Ingo, but would have outpointed him.

 

Ingo floored Patterson twice in their third matchup as well. By that time, Patterson had fought Ingo in two previous fights, and had been sparring in preparation for three. Nevertheless, Ingo almost took him out.

Perhaps Ingo was just really good at landing his right hand.

 

Nobody ever denied that. It took a peak effort from Floyd to truly nullify Johansson.

Fact is though, that Johansson benefited from being under-estimated. He threw nothing but flicking left jabs at Patterson for 2 rounds, drawing Patterson in and then unleashed the right hand. Had Patterson been more defensive or had he smothered Johansson's right hand as in their second fight, it would have been awfully difficult for Johansson to pull that strategy off.

 

True, but perhaps Johansson could have simply switched tactics in turn and blitzed Floyd as he nearly did in fight #3.

I agree with you that he benefited from Floyd's underpreparedness, but I suggest that something similar might have happened anyway. Johansson owes a lot more to his skill than to luck or overconfident opponents.

 

My comments on Johansson shouldn't be misunderstood as disparaging. The big factor about Johansson that separates him even from a Sonny Liston or Joe Louis is that he had no great reputation at the time he blasted out Machen. That's the most dangerous kind of opponent you can face, the one you know little about yet possesses devastating power.

Could a focused Conn possibly outpoint Johansson? Arguably. Would there be a legitimate threat of him being KO'd if he was not as focused as he was for Joe Louis? Yes there would.

 

I do get the idea that Ingo was a one trick pony, and that his fortunes declined once everybody was in no doubt what that trick was.

 

ingo wasn't a fan of movement. conn is one of the top 5 movers in history. this is the definition of a puncher's chance

conn dances around him and humiliates him as swarmer said earlier

 

Conn was something special as a fighter...more special than Johansson..and I admire Ingo.

 

Even if Conn is focussed as against Louis, is there not still the danger that he will disrespect Ingos right hand and try to stand toe to toe towards the end of the fight, like he arguably did against Joe Louis? This is a great fight that could go eitehr way and i see how both fighters could be favoured, but i do tend to think that Ingemar Johanson's right hand is the difference here, with Conn finally falling to the power.

 

Conn by u dec.